(This is in continuation to Part-I published on Last Friday, July 4,2025. Concluded Today)
Incidents At Karbala: When Hussain (AS)along with his family members and a small group of followers, reached the plains of Karbala, located near the Euphrates River in present-day Iraq on the 2nd of Muharram. He continued the journey until reached a place called Qatfiyyah, where there was an army of 1,000 men of Ibn Ziyad present whose commander was Hurr ibn Yazid al-Tamimi. It is interesting to note that Ibn Ziyad had come from Syria with less than 20 men. As words were exchanged, a 4,000-strong army of Umar ibn Sa’ad joined them, confronted Hussain, and conveyed Yazid’s demand for allegiance. Hussain(AS)showed them the letters that he had received from the people of Kufa inviting him there, mentioned of the murder of Muslim ibn Aqeel, and further mentioned his standing in the Ummah. On seeing the negative response and understanding the gravity of the situation, he offered the army that came to fight him for one of three things:
1. To let him return to Makkah.
2. To let him go to Yazid in al-Shaam, meet him, and give the pledge hand upon hand personally.
3. To let him go to the frontier to fight in jihad for the sake of Allah.
Ibn Sa’ad tried to negotiate these conditions with Ibn Ziyad as they made sense to him. In Kufa, a deputy of Yazid, Shamar or Shimar ibn Dhi’l Jawshan incited Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad to force and capture Hussain(AS)instead of negotiating with him. At this, Ibn Ziyad explicitly ordered Umar ibn Sa‘ad to pledge allegiance via Ubaydullah or fight al-Hussain without hearing any voices of reason. Umar was the son of Sa’ad ibn Abi Waqqas(RA)and initially refused to proceed with such a heinous action. Ibn Ziyad ordered Shimar to take over the leading, be a commander, remove Umar if he caused any issues, and take care of Hussain. Hussain(AS)refused to submit to Ibn Ziyad’s authority while in Kufa. He did not cry and beg for his life as many of the Shia sources portray him to have done. It is an insult to claim that the grandson of the Messenger of Allah (SAW), the son of Ali (RA), the son of Fatimah (RA)ا would beg for his life to be spared by a random group of men. The opposing forces of Ibn Ziyad surrounded Hussain(AS)’s camp, insisted that Hussain (AS) surrender and pledge allegiance right then and there instead of proceeding in any direction, and also cut off their access to the Euphrates River. Seeing the reluctance of Umar ibn Sa’ad to commence the battle Ibn Ziyad sent the ruthless Shimar ibn Dhi’l Jawshan (his chief commander) to replace Umar ibn Sa’ad as the commander. It is interesting to note how during the times of prayer, the two groups stopped any forms of fighting and used to unite behind Hussain (AS) as their Imam for the prayer as everyone there knew there was no one better than him. The group of Hussain (AS) spent the night of the 9th of Muharram in worship. Sheikh Ehsan Elahi Zaheer (R) and other scholars said that if we were to assess the different narrations on Karbala, we can conclude that the entire thing last for about 2-3 hours.The tragedy at Karbala began and the initial signs of victory were in the camp of Hussain (AS) even though many of his family members were martyred. It started with the martyrdom of Abbas ibn Ali, Hussain’s half-brother, and his son Ali ibn Hussain. Abbas was the standard-bearer of Hussain (AS)’s army and played a crucial role in providing water for the thirsty children and companions. He was martyred while trying to fetch water from the river. Hussain(AS)himself fought valiantly, displaying unmatched bravery and steadfastness. Hurr, the previous commander of the enemy forces defected and joined the camp of Hussain (AS). Despite their small numbers, not more than 100 people, the group of Hussain (AS) fought bravely against nearly 5000 men. It was a family and not an army that was fighting an army. The Kufan army had to bring in archers to break the resistance. In the final moments of the battle on Friday, the 10th of Muharram in 61 AH, Hussain (AS) was severely wounded and fell to the ground at 58 years of age [al-Mu’jam al-Kabir]. The enemies surrounded him, and Zur’a bin Shareek struck a blow on his shoulder. A man named Sinan ibn Abi Amr then advanced and attacked Hussain (AS) with a spear and put him to the ground. Upon the order of Shimar, Sinan then dismounted from his horse and killed him. Some reports suggest that Khawli ibn Yazid al-Asbahi was the one who cut off Hussain(AS)’s head from his body. The blessed head of al-Hussain(AS)was brought and placed in front of Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad, who started poking at the teeth with a stick. Hands tremble and pens break as we write this. This was the most despicable crime and heinous murder someone could commit. It baffles our minds to even imagine how drunk on the dunya were these men that they even dared to raise a sword against the grandson of the Messenger of Allah (SAW). How they will stand in front of Allah or His Messenger (SAW) in the hereafter. May Allah’s Curse be upon all of them and may they be given the harshest of punishments in the hereafter.
In summary, we can conclude that 3 main groups are responsible for the murder of Hussain (AS):
1. Those that invited Hussain (AS) to Kufa and then abandoned him.
2. Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad and his group that went ahead to kill the Ahl al-Bayt on their own accord without any orders from al-Shaam.
3. Sinan ibn Abi Amr who laid the fatal blow that martyred Hussain (AS).
Imam al-Layth bin Sa’ad’s (R) list of the martyrs at Karbala from Ahlul Bayt:
1. Al-Hussain bin Ali bin Abi Talib
2. Ja’far bin bin Abi Talib
3. Abdullah bin Ali bin Abi Talib
4. Uthman bin Ali bin Abi Talib
5. Abu Bakr bin Ali bin Abi Talib
6. Ali bin Al-Hussain bin Ali bin Abi Talib
7. Abdullah bin Al-Hasan
8. Abu Bakr bin Al-Hussain
9. Al-Qassim bin Al-Hasan
10. Awn bin Abdullah bin Ja’far bin Abi Talib
11. Mohammad bin Abdullah bin Ja’far bin Abi Talib
12. Ja’far bin Aqeel bin Abi Talib
13. Muslim bin Aqeel bin Abi Talib
14. Sulayman the servant of Al-Hussain
15. Abdullah bin Al-Hussain (the infant)
May Allah accept them all as martyrs.
“Hussain (AS) is honored as the beloved grandson of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW), signifying a profound spiritual connection and legacy. His elevation to the status of martyrdom highlights the significance of his sacrifices and struggles in the path of righteousness. Furthermore, in the Hereafter, Hussain (AS) is bestowed with the esteemed role of being a leader of the youths in Paradise, underscoring his exemplary character and the lasting impact of his actions on future generations. This recognition emphasizes the importance of his contributions to the faith and serves as an inspiration for believers.”
Years later, Sinan met Hajjaj ibn Yusuf. A meeting of tyrants and killers. Imam al-Tabarani narrated that Aslam al-Manqari said, “After I entered upon al-Hajjaj, Sinan bin Anas, the killer of al-Hussain (AS), entered. He was an elderly dark man, with henna, a long nose, and discolouration on his face. He stood towards al-Hajjaj and al-Hajjaj looked at him. He said: “Are you the killer of al-Hussain(AS) ?” He said: “Yes.” He said: “How did you do it?” He said: “I rammed my spear into him and cut him by my sword.” al-Hajjaj said: “You will not be united with him in one abode (in the afterlife).” [al-Mu’jam al-Kabir]. This is one of the most authentic narrations we have on this matter. After the battle, Yazid’s forces plundered their camps. Imam al-Tabari narrates from Humayd ibn Muslim the following, “I (Humayd) reached the tent of Hadhrat Ali ibn Hussain (Zainul Aabideen) and found him ill, lying in the bed. I heard Shimar ibn Dhil Jaushan saying to his men, ‘Why have we not yet kill this one?’ I exclaimed SubhanAllah! Do you wish to kill a child? I continued pushing them back until Umar ibn Sa’ad arrived. Seeing the situation, he immediately ordered that none should enter the tent in which the women were present and that the ill youngster be left alone. He also ordered that all the looted possessions be returned, but nothing was brought back. Ali ibn Hussain at that time thanked Umar ibn Sa’ad, saying, may you be rewarded, for verily your words have saved us from great danger!” After this, the enemy forces took the surviving family members of Hussain (AS), including his sister Zainab and his young son Ali Zain al-Abidin (RA), as captives to Kufa. Ibn Ziyad, may Allah’s Curse be upon him, sent the severed head of Hussain (AS) with them also to al-Shaam. Before that, he was making a mockery of the head of Hussain (AS). Anas bin Malik (RA) reported, “The head of al-Hussain (AS) was brought to Ubaydullah bin Ziyad and was put in a tray, and then Ibn Ziyad started playing with a stick at the nose and mouth of al-Hussain(AS)’s head and saying something about his handsome features.” Anas then said (to him), “al-Hussain (AS) resembled the Prophet more than the others did. [Bukhari].Imam Ibn Asakir (R) reports that Ibn Ziyad was just twenty eight years old when he killed Hussain (AS). [Tarikh al-Dimashq]. In al-Shaam, Yazid expressed regret and washed his hands off from the actions of his envoys in Kufa. He gave money and provisions to the family of Hussain(AS) and allowed them to leave for Damascus after which they went back to Madinah. Despite speaking words of regret to the family of Hussain(AS), he did not take any action against the killers to show his disapproval of the murder or to avenge him, when he should have done that. A man to take note of in all this is Mukhtar ibn Abu Ubayd al-Thaqafi who is one of the biggest liars and dajjals in this Ummah. It was he who pushed the Kufans to call Hussain(AS) to Kufa, hosted Muslim ibn Aqeel and then abandoned him to be killed. After the death of Yazid, Mukhtar starts inviting the masses towards Muhammad ibn Hanafiyyah, the son of Ali with the claim that he, Muhammad, is the ‘promised Mahdi’. He would then go on to say that it was him who was actually the Mahdi, and then lay claim of being a Prophet himself, and finally to take the step of declaring himself as the Almighty incarnated. He was the embodiment of the warning issued by the Messenger of Allah regarding the emergence of a ‘dajjal’ from the tribe of Thaqeef, and that dajjal was none other but this very Mukhtar. His satanic movement was finally brought to an end after years of harming the Muslims when Abdullah ibn Zubair ordered his brother, Mus’ab ibn Zubair to stop him in his tracks and execute him. The only good this man ever did in his life and that too was driven by a zeal to elevate his own name was to capture, crucify, and hang the bodies of Sinan ibn Abi Amr, Ubaydullah ibn Ziyad, and Shimar ibn Dhi’l Jawshan at the gates of Kufah in 67 AH. Imam al-Tirmidhi (R) narrated in his Sunan: Umara bin Umayr said, “When the heads of Ubaydullah bin Ziyad and his men were brought, they were placed on top of one another in the hall of the mosque. I reached them as they were saying: “It comes! It comes!” A snake then slithered through the heads until it reached the nostrils of Ubaydullah bin Ziyad, where it stayed for a little while before leaving, and it then disappeared. They then said: “It comes! It comes!” It then did the same thing twice or thrice.” The closest people to Allah are those that are tested the most. Sa’ad ibn Abi Waqqas(RA)reported: I said, “O Messenger of Allah, which people are tested most severely?” The Messenger of Allah (SAW) said, “They are the prophets, then the next best, then the next best. A man is put to trial according to his religion. If he is firm in his religion, his trials will be more severe. If he is weak in his religion, he is put to trial according to his strength in religion. The servant will continue to be put to trial until he is left walking upon the earth without any sin” [Tirmidhi]. Allah honoured Hussain(RA)to be the beloved grandson of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW), raised him to the rank of martyrdom and in the Hereafter, made him a leader of the youths in Paradise.
(The authors write regularly on Islamic topics exclusively for the opinion pages of “Kashmir Horizon”. The views, opinions and conclusions expressed in this article are those of the author and aren’t necessarily in accord with the views of “Kashmir Horizon”)
Dr. Bilal Ahmad
Intizar Ahmad
